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| Kylian Mbappe of Paris Saint-Germain looks on during warmup before the Ligue 1 Uber Eats match between Paris Saint Germain and ESTAC Troyes at Parc des Princes on May 08, 2022 in Paris, France. |
Paris Saint-Germain coach Mauricio
Pochettino insisted Friday he has no idea where Kylian Mbappe will play his club football
next season as the striker’s contract in the French capital comes to an end.
Mbappe is expected to reveal in the coming days whether he will join Real
Madrid or accept a lucrative offer to stay at PSG, with an announcement
potentially being made in the hours after the French champions play their final
game of the Ligue 1 season at home to Metz on Saturday.
“I don’t know what his decision
is. I think it’s a personal matter for Kylian and for the club,”
Pochettino said at a press conference ahead of the Metz match.“There are lots of rumours
going around but the player is the one who will have to talk about this.“If I knew what his decision was
I wouldn’t be the one to talk about it.”
Mbappe, who joined PSG from Monaco
in 2017, last week won the Ligue 1 Player of the Year prize and comes into the
final weekend of the season as the division’s top scorer with 25 goals.
Rumours are swirling in France and
in Spain about when he will confirm where his next contract will be.
“Mbappe, end of the suspense on
Sunday,” claimed the headline in French sports daily L’Equipe on Friday.
Pochettino said he hoped the
23-year-old would remain at PSG even if uncertainty surrounds the coach’s own
future despite the Argentine and his staff having a year left on their own
deals.
“I hope Kylian is still here
for many years to come but I also can’t lie. I don’t know what is going to
happen,” he said.“We have a year left on our
contracts so we will potentially be here next season. I just hope tomorrow
(Saturday) we can enjoy celebrating the club’s 10th league title.”
One player who is definitely
expected to move on is Angel di Maria, with the 34-year-old Argentine winger’s
own contract expiring and PSG understood to be happy for him to leave.
PSG have cantered to the Ligue 1
title, equalling Saint-Etienne’s French record for most league championships,
but their season has been soured by defeat against Real Madrid in the Champions
League last 16 in early March.
The Parisians were 1-0 up away to
Madrid an hour into the second leg thanks to a Mbappe goal, and led 2-0 on
aggregate, only to implode and go out to a Karim Benzema hat-trick.
“I hope the best is still to
come. I think everyone at Paris Saint-Germain wants to win the Champions
League. That has become an obsession for this club and I hope we can win
it,” Pochettino added.“That spell in the second half
in Madrid saw us not get the result we wanted and created lots of questions and
emotions that we have not been able to control in recent months.“Despite that the players
deserve to be congratulated because they have shown the ability to lift
themselves and finish the season.”
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